In short, Ziyad and his family are far from alone in feeling internationally persecuted and obstructed in many ways from "pursing happiness." This is horrendous practice because in any one year approximately 200 million people on planet Earth are immigrating or seeking to become immigrants. [1]
I wish to take this time to encourage immigrants and à ©migrà ©s of the world to unite and demand better treatment before so-called legal regimes or state governments which disrespect the rule of law and have trashed Article 13 of the UN Declaration nearly continuously since its inception over 6 decades ago.
NOTES
[1] FROM: http://www.globalissues.org/article/537/immigration
People emigrate from one country to
another for a variety of complex reasons. Some are forced to move, due to
conflict or to escape persecution and prejudices, while others may voluntarily
emigrate. Although such a move may be necessary, it can be quite traumatic on
top of the challenges experienced so far.
From another perspective, immigration
can also represent an act of courage. For example,
- Moving to a different country with different culture and norms can
be quite daunting;
- The potential loneliness to be suffered is not always easy to
overcome;
- There may be the additional pressure to earn enough to live (in a
more expensive-to-live-in country) and send back meager savings.
An economic migrant, a person
searching for work, or better opportunities, will be stepping into the
unknown--an exciting prospect if the person is already well-to-do, or daunting
at least, if out of desperation.
Immigration can have positive and
negative impacts on both the host (recipient) country, and the original
country.
The recipient country is usually an
industrialized country in Western Europe, or the
- Immigrants will often do jobs that people in the host country will
not, or cannot do;
- Migrant workers often work longer hours and for lower salaries,
and while that is controversial, sometimes exploitive, it benefits the
host country;
- Immigrants, when made to feel welcome in the host society, can
contribute to the diversity of that society, which can help with tolerance
and understanding;
- For the host country's economy, immigrants offer an increased
talent pool, if they have been well educated in their original country.
But there are also numerous drawbacks:
- Immigrants can be exploited for their cheap labor;
- Developing countries may suffer "brain
drain" as the limited resources they spend in educating their students
amount to very little if that talent is enticed to another country. (The
- Immigration can also attract criminal elements, from trafficking
in drugs and people to other forms of crime and corruption;
- Immigration can become a social/political issue, where racism can
be used to exploit feelings or as an excuse for current woes of local
population;
- Where there is a perception that immigrants and refugees appear to
get more benefits than local poor people, tensions and hostilities can
also rise;
- Concerns about illegal immigration can spill over to ill-feelings
towards the majority of immigrants who are law-abiding and contributing to
the economy;
- Many die trying to flee their predicament, and this can often make
sensational headlines giving the appearance that immigration is largely
illegal and "out of control."
Despite what appears to be large
population movements, Gary Younge, from the Guardian noted some
time ago that people
still are not able to move as freely as commodities. In some places around
the world, there are additional restrictions being put up on people's
movements.
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